José Manuel Fernández and representatives of the Popular Party’s municipal group met at the start of the week with the provincial delegate for education, Miguel Briones, to put forward a new layout for the land earmarked for building Manilva’s second secondary school. APAE technicians are reported to have visited Manilva last Wednesday, although the Town Hall has yet to officially announce the outcome of their assessment, and no statement has been issued about this important visit by the «official channels». The visit, which had been eagerly awaited, could be the real starting point for getting the new school up and running.
The Partido Popular has announced that its spokesperson, José Manuel Fernández, accompanied by representatives of the municipal group, has held a meeting with the provincial delegate for Education in Málaga, Miguel Briones, to present a new proposal on the land earmarked for the future school.
According to the party on its social media, the meeting was used to convey the work carried out by the group and an alternative that it also wishes to make available to the AMPAS (parents’ associations), the education community and the Town Hall. The aim, it says, is to incorporate different contributions and ensure that all parties work in the same direction for the good of the whole education community in the municipality.
A new layout for the land
The PP’s proposal starts from the roughly 30,000 square metres of municipal land whose availability, the party recalls, was made possible by an agreement promoted while it was running the Town Hall.
The PP proposes keeping the construction of the new secondary school as the main objective, but introducing changes to the layout of the plot, particularly the location of the car park. It is also considering other infrastructure which, it says, it will announce shortly.
The party says this alternative uses the land already being considered for the project, although it incorporates a different layout. To explain its proposal, the group presented plans and infographics to the provincial delegate.
In its statement, the PP also recalls the political controversy that surrounded the land agreement at the time, which, it notes, was described by some as a «pelotazo» (a property speculation scandal) and received votes against.
APAE technicians are reported to have visited Manilva on Wednesday
One of the most notable announcements in the statement is that the visit by technicians from the Andalusian Public Education Agency (APAE), initially scheduled for 16 November, has been brought forward.
According to the PP, the efforts made by José Manuel Fernández with the Provincial Delegation, asking for the deadlines to be shortened, made it possible to bring the visit forward to this Wednesday, but it is striking that Manilva Town Hall has not publicly reported on the visit so far. It is a particularly important meeting for establishing the situation of the land and making progress on a demand that families and the education community have been making for years.
As of today, we do not know how the inspection went, what assessment the technicians made, or whether they have identified any issue that must be resolved before the process continues.
A project that needs the cooperation of all parties
The PP says it will share its proposal with the AMPAS, the education community and the Town Hall, and argues that securing the second secondary school must come before political differences. The party also thanks the provincial delegate and the Education technicians for their willingness to engage, and says it will continue working from the opposition to provide alternatives.
These moves come after the Junta de Andalucía’s draft budget for 2027 expressly included the drafting of the project for the new IES Las Viñas among the education commitments planned for the province of Málaga. This reference represents progress in the planning, although the funding needed to carry out the works has yet to be confirmed.
The need for a second secondary school is clear: the current IES Las Viñas serves around 1,400 pupils, almost double the 700 it was designed for. For that reason, every step forward on the availability of the land, its technical assessment and the drafting of the project is important if Manilva is to move closer to a definitive solution.
What remains to be seen is the outcome of the APAE visit and whether the new proposal put forward by the PP can help speed up a project that needs, beyond announcements and political differences, administrative progress and concrete commitments that allow it to actually get under way.
